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Job Description

Overview

We are seeking a Design Engineer to join a stable manufacturing organization specializing in custom cast-in heaters and heating elements. This role is ideal for a mechanical engineering professional who enjoys SolidWorks, product design, and hands-on manufacturing.

Responsibilities

  • Design and modify custom heaters, components, and assemblies using SolidWorks.
  • Create detailed 2D manufacturing drawings with dimensions, tolerances, and GD&T.
  • Develop and maintain BOMs and engineering documentation.
  • Support prototypes, testing, design validation, and product improvements.
  • Perform basic engineering calculations related to stress, loading, thermal considerations, and materials.
  • Work with manufacturing to troubleshoot design and production issues.
  • Support engineering changes, casting simulation, and CAD/CAM activities.
  • Work with Sales and customers to understand requirements and support new projects.
  • Manage multiple projects while meeting customer and production requirements.

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
  • 0–3 years of engineering experience; internships, co-ops, university research, and hands-on engineering experience are welcome.
  • Strong SolidWorks and 2D CAD skills.
  • Understanding of mechanical engineering fundamentals and engineering drawings.
  • Familiarity with machining, fabrication, casting, or mechanical assembly.
  • Strong problem-solving, communication, and attention-to-detail skills.
  • Preferred: Experience with casting simulation, CAD/CAM, CNC programming, sheet metal, electrical circuits, or hands-on manufacturing.

Additional Information

  • Location: Wood Dale, IL
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How this job compares in Wood Dale, IL

Pay in context

At roughly $32/hr, this posting lands within a few percent of the $31/hr median for welding jobs across Illinois, whose middle half runs $26–$38/hr across 270 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 56% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. In other words it is a market-rate offer, so benefits, overtime, and shift schedule are where the real difference between this and the next posting on the list shows up.

The local market in Wood Dale, IL

Wood Dale, IL is a small market in our index: 2 other active welding openings alongside this one, from 2 employers. Across Illinois as a whole we're tracking 374 other active welding openings from 234 employers. With this few local postings, most welders here end up either commuting or looking at travel work. Browse welding jobs across Illinois.

Sterling Engineering currently has 2 other openings live in Illinois, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in Illinois at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are S&C Electric Company (15), Gerber Collision & Glass (14), and Staff on Site (13). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within Illinois, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Chicago at $36/hr, Itasca at $36/hr, and Elk Grove Village at $34/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

Similar openings near Wood Dale, IL

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Design Engineer figures were last recalculated when this page was built.